Adirondack Bank Center
The Aud | |
NEHL) (2006–2007) Utica Comets (AHL) (2013–present) Utica Jr. Comets (USPHL) (2017–present) Utica City FC (MASL) (2018–present) Utica Yeti Lacrosse Club (IBLA) (2021) | |
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Official website |
The Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium[5] is a 3,860-seat multi-purpose arena in Utica, New York, with a capacity of 5,700 for concerts. Nicknamed the Aud, it is the home arena of the Utica Comets, the AHL affiliate of the NHL's New Jersey Devils, and Utica City FC of the Major Arena Soccer League.
In 2011, the Utica Memorial Auditorium was designated as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in recognition of its innovative cable suspended roof.
History
The Utica Memorial Auditorium was conceived by then-Utica mayor John T. McKennan, who believed that the city needed a place for entertainment and sporting events.[1] McKennan and the administration that he hired to plan out the process, led by Frank M. Romano, then hired Gilbert Seltzer, a well-known architect, to draw up plans for the building.[1] A site was found along the old Erie Canal, and groundbreaking took place April 15, 1957. The arena was constructed using the world's first pre-stressed dual cable roof system, designed by Lev Zetlin (who would later partner with architect Philip Johnson to construct both the New York State Pavilion "Tent of Tomorrow" seen at the 1964 World's Fair[6] and the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute, also located in Utica, NY[7]) with "struts" between the cables.[3] John A. Roebling's Sons Company developed the tensioning method for the project.[8][9] Zetlin's design became the predecessor to the many modern dome designs seen today, and has since influenced many other tensile structures including Madison Square Garden.[10][11][12] Seltzer would take the most pride in constructing "The Aud", saying, "This was the first successful use of cables for a roof structure."
"The Aud" was also one of the first stadiums to have telescopic seats. Telescopic bleachers (the bleachers pulled out from below higher levels) were common in stadiums, but Zetlin requested more comfortable seating for the arena.[13]
Work continued through 1958 and into 1959. When the auditorium was finally completed, it became one of just three arenas built without obstructed views.
Scenes from the 1977
In 2011, the Utica Memorial Auditorium was designated as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in recognition of its innovative cable suspended roof.[17][18]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fd/Utica_Memorial_Auditorium_Interior-_December_15%2C_2013.jpg/220px-Utica_Memorial_Auditorium_Interior-_December_15%2C_2013.jpg)
On June 14, 2013, it was announced that the Peoria Rivermen, the AHL farm team of the National Hockey League's Vancouver Canucks would be relocating to the Utica Memorial Auditorium for the 2013–14 season as the Utica Comets.[19] As the AHL has a strong presence in Western and Central New York State, the league agreed to the move, citing the move would further boost the league's strength in the Northeast while further cutting down on travel expenses. On October 23, 2013, the Comets played at "The Aud", losing 4–1 to the Albany Devils in front of a sold out crowd.[20] Frank Corrado scored the first Comet goal on home ice.
In addition to the Comets, the auditorium plays host to the
In recent years, "The Aud" has earned high rankings from hockey circles, earning the #8 spot in "The 10 Coolest Hockey Rinks in the World" list by Complex Magazine,[21] the #8 rank for best AHL arena by Stadium Journey,[22] and #4 in the Pure Hockey Blog's list of the top 6 places to skate for hockey.[23]
Photos and renderings of the Utica Memorial Auditorium are on permanent display at New York's Museum of Modern Art. The museum's collection honors the auditorium as an architectural landmark.[24][25]
On September 27, 2017, the Upper Mohawk Valley Memorial Auditorium Authority announced a 10-year naming rights deal with locally based Adirondack Bank, amending the official name of "The Aud" to Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium.[5]
In November 2017, work was completed on the 26,000-square-foot expansion that added a new entrance, a half-dozen executive suites, a new women's bathroom, a building-wide sprinkler system and other amenities to the facility. The $10.55 million project was fully funded by the state.[26] A restaurant named "72 Tavern & Grill" was constructed on existing foundation on the West side of the facility that supported underground areas of the Aud. The "72" is in honor of the 72 cables that have held up the roof of the Adirondack Bank Center for more than 50 years.[27]
On June 1, 2018, the Adirondack Bank Center hosted UFC Fight Night: Rivera vs. Moraes.
On June 13, 2018, Mohawk Valley Garden CEO Rob Esche and Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) commissioner Joshua Schaub, along with other officials, announced that Utica will field a professional indoor soccer team — called Utica City Football Club, or UCFC for short — that will play home games at the Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium beginning with the 2018–19 season.[28] The team had previously been known as the Syracuse Silver Knights.
The Nexus Canter, a new sports facility attached to the Adirondack Bank Center, was completed in 2022.[29][30] In 2023, Utica University purchased its naming rights, rebranding it the Utica University Nexus Center.[31]
The
High school sports
In addition to its regular season high school hockey games, the Utica Memorial Auditorium hosted the New York State Ice Hockey semi-finals and finals every year from its inception to the 2015 Championships. In August 2015, NYSPHSAA announced it would be moving the state tournament to Buffalo's
References
- ^ a b c d e Romano, Paul; Romano, David (May 23, 2009). "Guest View: The Aud Turns 50". Observer-Dispatch. Utica. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
- ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
- ^ a b MINER, DAN. "From idea to reality". Utica Observer Dispatch. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ Rushmore, Ralph (1960). A City Reborn. Utica: Fusco Advertising Agency. p. 18.
- ^ a b Birnell, Ben (September 27, 2017). "$2M deal leads to new name for Utica Aud". Utica Observer Dispatch. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
- from the original on May 26, 2015. Retrieved November 23, 2023.
- ^ "AD Classics: Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute / Philip Johnson". April 2014.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Utica Memorial Auditorium named Civil Engineering Landmark | NBC-WKTV News Channel 2 - Utica News, Weather, Sports - | Local News". Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
- ^ "Home - Adirondack Bank Center".
- ^ "Arena - Utica Comets Official Website". Archived from the original on June 19, 2014. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
- ^ "Utica Memorial Auditorium Recognized as National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark".
- ^ Ackerman, Bryan. "Aud Architecture Made It "Breakthrough Facility"". Utica Observer Dispatch. Gatehouse Media. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
- ^ "Utica Memorial Auditorium History". Upper Mohawk Valley Memorial Auditorium Authority. Archived from the original on July 22, 2011. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
- ^ Rushmore, Ralph (1960). A City Reborn. Utica: Utica: Fusco Advertising Agency. pp. 20–21.
- ^ "Utica College to Host 'Frozen Four'".
- ^ "Utica Memorial Auditorium named Civil Engineering Landmark". WKTV. Utica. August 30, 2011. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2010.
- ^ "Utica Memorial Auditorium". American Society of Civil Engineers. Archived from the original on April 23, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2016.
- ^ "Utica Comets Announced as Local AHL Team". WKTV. Utica. June 14, 2013. Archived from the original on June 16, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2013.
- ^ "Utica Comets 2013-2014 Schedule - Utica Comets Official Website". Archived from the original on May 9, 2015. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
- ^ "The 10 Coolest Hockey Rinks in the World". Complex Networks.
- ^ Baker, Paul (May 20, 2014). "Ranking the Arenas of the AHL". Stadium Journey. Archived from the original on August 4, 2016.
- ^ Bernstein, Mat (October 21, 2014). "Hockey Bucket List: 6 Best Rinks To Play In". Pure Hockey Blog. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
- ^ "At 99, Architect Remembers His First Break –". Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
- ^ "Fire Research Division" (PDF). Nist. December 11, 2008.
- ^ Mason, Greg (November 1, 2017). "Comets home ice reborn". Utica Observer Dispatch. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ "72 Tavern and Grill Coming to the Adirondack Bank Center".
- ^ Birnell, Ben (June 13, 2018). "Utica gets Major Arena Soccer League team". Utica Observer Dispatch. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
- ^ "Governor Hochul Announces Grand Opening of $64 Million Nexus Center in Downtown Utica". Governor Kathy Hochul. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
- ^ "Utica University Nexus Center". Utica Univ. Nexus. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
- ^ "Nexus Center rebranded as Utica University Nexus Center". Utica University. March 2, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
- ^ Donkin, Karissa (December 3, 2023). "Let the scrimmages begin: PWHL gathers in Upstate New York with final cuts on horizon". CBC Sports. Archived from the original on December 5, 2023. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ Dichter, Myles. "Women's hockey world championship headed to Utica, N.Y. in 2024". CBC. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
- ^ "Canada edges US in overtime for women's hockey world title". NBC Sports. April 14, 2024. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
- ^ "NYSPHSAA Wrestling Championships - Tournament History". Archived from the original on January 9, 2014. Retrieved January 11, 2013.
Further reading
- Ritter, Andy. "Utica Memorial Auditorium-Home of the Utica Comets". Roaming The Rinks.